Honors Student Council: Of The Students, By The Students, For The Students

The Jay and Jeanie Schottenstein Honors Program at Yeshiva College recently formed its first student council. Consisting of five representatives elected by students in the Honors Program, the council represents positive movement towards a union of the faculty and students that make up the Honors Program. Honors Program director Dr. Joanne Jacobson noted that the Honors Program Student Council gives the "honors students a formal way in which to provide more input into planning the program" as well as providing "honors faculty and administrators [with] a 'go-to' organization when they want input and ideas from honors students."

The Honors Program Student Council will have input and "provide student representation on relevant college committees-like the Honors Committee (consisting of faculty representatives) and the search committee for a new honors director" said Dr. Jacobson.

Two members of the Honors Program Student Council, Ben Greenfield and Julian Horowitz, have been inducted as members of the Honors Committee. The Honors Program Student Council will also have one representative in the search committee for a new honors director.

Dr. Jacobson assured The Commentator those student members "will have full voting power on the committees on which they are official members," just like faculty.

Ben Greenfield expanded on Dr. Jacobson's statement, noting that in the beginning, he started his position with mistrust, "but the majority of faculty have extended themselves to include student input" in the decision making process, going beyond a mere equal vote. Julian Horowitz commented that he "was timid at first, sitting in the presence of so many esteemed faculty members." But this didn't deter him and he was soon "made to feel like an equal member of the committee." Greenfield concluded that both the students and faculty have learned from the past summer "that working together, we can be stronger."

Apparently, some faculty members do not approve of these student appointments to the Honors Committee. In an Honors Committee meeting on October 29, certain faculty voiced concern over student involvement in the Honors Committee. Several members argued that all decisions regarding the Honors program and its search for a new director should be made exclusively by YC faculty. Several faculty voiced similar concerns while others were more accepting of student involvement. Ben Greenfield believes that such opposition stems from "the old time view that students cannot be trusted to know their own wants and needs." The Honors Program Student Council passed its first resolution to combat this by affirming "its right to represent the students of the Honors Program and be heard as a strong student voice to the faculty and administration of Yeshiva College."

Despite these faculty concerns, the student representatives remain on the Honors Committee. For some, this was expected. "The general sentiment among students," argued Zev Eleff, chair of the Honors Program Student Council, "is that the faculty -- with what happened last summer - has significantly hurt Yeshiva College and its Honors Program. The students were kept in the dark and refuse to operate in this manner anymore. Fortunately, Yeshiva College is run by devoted administrators who strongly believe in student input and cooperation."

While several honors students supported Eleff's assertion, other honors students responded with surprising ambivalence. They did not deny that mistrust existed between the faculty and honors students. They did note, however, that the ambiguity of the council's mission and the lack of transparency concerning the council's actions have resulted in a sense of apathy among students of the Honors Program. "I just don't know enough to care" said one student, who did not wish to be named. Eleff further defended the decision to appoint a student to the search committee by noting that Dean Srolovitz has mandated that the new director of the Honors Program "be a person whose vision accords with Torah U'Madda. Since it is the student body alone that is charged with the daily pursuit that emphasizes the University's ideal, some might question how qualified professors are to decide Torah U'Madda related decisions on behalf of the Yeshiva College." "Certainly, as highly trained professors, the faculty is comprised of top scholars and individuals who have extensive experience in academic settings. However, it is difficult to believe that such experience covers all of the unique nuances of the Yeshiva College community," added Eleff. "On the other hand, dedicated students may be more qualified to address more issues relating to our Torah-based academic community. Yet, our ages and transient careers at YC make us less-than-ideal decision-making candidates, as well. Therefore, Yeshiva College policies should be made cooperatively by students and faculty."

Dr. Jacobson noted that the idea for the Honors Student Council sprang forth "naturally and organically out of discussions over the last several months about student input into decision-making about the Honors Program." Eleff views the council as "the natural outcome after burgeoning friction between students and certain faculty members."

The council's activities are not geared exclusively towards the honors student body. "An honors program can be much more than just a series of unrelated classes, the occasional free meal, and a really long paper" noted Julian Horowitz, a member of the Honors Program Student Council. "It should be an honors experience," he declared. "We are planning to implement several extracurricular programs next semester," said Eleff. He hopes that these programs will "enhance the intellectual activity of Yeshiva College students." Some members of the council are hoping to achieve academic change as well. Horowitz hopes that, in the near future, "the serious and qualified honors student will encounter a different, more accommodating (but not necessarily easier) set of requirements than a non-honors YC student in order to better facilitate his taking advantage of the 'honors experience.'" Greenfield expressed a similar desire, stating that "We need to create within YU an environment as academically challenging, rigorous, and exciting as those found on an Ivy League campus." He further asked "if Princeton was built for Orthodox Jews, with their issues, schedules, passions, and pitfalls, what would it look like?" But members of the Honors Program Student Council take this role of representative very seriously. Eleff declared, "Our Student Council will not be another semi-financed cluster of party planners." He closed by asserting that the Honors Student Council will "seek, as best as we can, to be the voice of our honors student body."

Eleff commended Dean Srolovitz, Dr. Jacobson and Dr. Cwilich for these appointments and the trust they have given the Honors Program Student Council. Eleff noted, "owing to general student distrust in the faculty that has arisen from the events of the past summer, these are very important roles for our group and the student body." Those students in the Honors Committee "report back to the council and serve as a surrogate for the entire Honors Program Student Council" stated Eleff.